Sunday, 30 January 2011

Business as usual at the National Television Awards then. All a bit ho-hum, all told.

The winners are listed all over the internet if you're interested enough to look, like here, but the most interesting thing was the programme's start - a bizarre-Dermot O'Leary-in-the-Tardis-with-the-Doctor-mini-scene.

The pair of 'em - travelling about the fictional TV universe they were.

Dermot had over-slept you see, in his stripey blue pyjamas, and was late for presenting the programme so the Doctor came to the rescue. That's like the plot.

And on the journey they encountered various TV 'talent', complete with little jokettes. Witness: Ant and Dec's invisible hand-cuffs! Dot Cotton washing the Doctor's suit in the launderette! And other things worthy of a sentence ending in an exclamation mark probably!

But let us pause - for now we put out a call to the more serious Doctor Who fan: please don't get panicky, because the implications of this mini-episode are clear.

If all these fictional TV characters know the Doctor, what does it mean for the universe as a whole? Is the so-called 'NTA cutaway' canon? Could the Doctor have had regular unseen adventures in Albert Square before? (Yes! - possibly) Where were Amy and Rory? And could Dermot be the new companion?

(Yes, in a word, as long as his dialogue was minimal.)

And while we're here, let's take a look at Dimensions in Time - a Children in Need Doctor Who-meets-EastEnders charity special from 1993. Be warned...

If you've still got eyes, a soul, and an iron-like will, there's a part two for you to watch, if you dare, over on Youtube. There's no link though, I'm not that sick.